GREAT British Bake Off host Mary Berry has unveiled the world's longest ever hand-knitted piece of bunting - measuring a staggering 4.6miles long and consisting of 31,119 individual flags.

Some 996 volunteers dedicated 24,840 hours of their time to complete the remarkable feat which has been recognised as a Guinness World Record.

The mammoth piece of bunting - made up of 52 million stitches - is so big that it was stored in a large barn before its unveiling at Upton House near Banbury, Oxfordshire, which is managed by the National Trust.

Mary, 81, was joined by supporters to celebrate breaking the world record, which was previously set in October 2011 and measured 10,539 feet.

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Indeed, several hundred of the triangles were knitted by a local woman who is registered blind and was encouraged to take up her knitting needles once more.

The record attempt is part of an ongoing series of events at Upton House.

These include 'Banking for Victory', which is an exhibition looking at the country house's involvement in the Second World War The bunting will eventually be turned into blankets for a charity for the homeless.

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The record attempt is part of an ongoing series of events at Upton House

Ms Leake, who has been house manager at Upton House for over ten years, praised the efforts of everyone involved.

She said: "We want to say a big thank you to our hundreds of volunteers and people who contributed hours and hours of their time knitting and sewing the individual pieces of bunting.